Daily Planet Invasion Special Vol 1 1
In the Pacific Theatre, UN forces fought desperately to hold back the alien tide surging across the islands made famous in the World War II. The Alliance had spent securing their holds on the islands of Guam, Truk, and Ponape, which were taken back through heavyfighting. The aliens then launched a massive assault on in the in an eerie reenactment of the Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign ov WWII. Should Kwajalein fall, then The Alliance will strike Hawaii and making a possible attack on California. The main alien force in the Pacific campaign are the barbarous Khunds; whose cruelty and atrocities committed against human prisoners of war and natives of the captured islands are, according to a Congressional committee, "the greatest offense against humanity since Hitler's Final Solution." Supporting the Khunds are the Thanagarians. Experts assess the Pacific conflict as one of the most crucial in the war. Earth: Island Apart By Robert Loren Fleming Since the invasion, Earth remains isolated from any form of space traffic, as Alliance spaceships maintained stationary orbits around the moon, effectively blockading all incoming and outgoing space traffic. Warnings were issued to Earth vessels to remain on their launching pads or risk destruction. As a warning, a Russian orbiter was immediately destroyed in mid-flight by a laser beam. The burning vessel then crashed off the coast of Florida and all its crew were killed. While a few human satellites were destroyed, The Alliance kept spy satellites intact for the purpose of demonstrating to Earth's nations in the most graphic possible way the utter futility of armed resistance against the invasion. There are also raising questions on the functions of the satellites singled out for destruction. Both the American and Soviet governments refused to comment, stating reasons of national security, but there are speculations that those satellites were components in both countries' escalating defense initiatives and may have represented violations of treaties banning the testing and deployment of such devices. Looting Riots Hits Metropolis By Michael De Lepine Martial law has been declare in Metropolis in order to stem the tide of looting and wanton violence in the wake of the invasion. Complicating the city's law enforcement is the absence of Metropolis' protector Superman, whose whereabouts left people wandering what he is doing about the invasion and its ramifications. SWAT units, assisted by the National Guard, are exercising a "shoot to wound" order handed down by the Governor toward any civilian caught engaging in criminal mischief. Emergency paramedics and local firefighters are unable to respond to the vast numbers of emergencies and chaos occurring throughout Metropolis. Luthor Hopes To House Homeless By Renee Witterstaetter While Metropolis did not suffer as badly as Melbourne and saw little loss of life, hundreds of families are left homeless. In a surprising move, Lex Luthor of Lexcorp is willing to help the homeless by establishing a construction fund that will help to rebuild the damages inflicted upon the city. Luthor is also considering setting up a separate fund for rebuilding businesses. However, the Daily Planet, which was already heavily damaged, will not be included in this fund at the "Planet's" request. Guardian Arrows Take On The Sorrows Of The City By Barbara Kesel A group of young people, students, and workers have taken themselves to safeguard the streets of Metropolis. They are called the Guardian Arrows. The Arrows have been laboring to keep the city's trouble spots from spreading and working side-by-side with overstretched law enforcement, who were originally opposed to the vigilante group and had planned to outlaw them a month ago. So far, the Guardian Arrows have proven themselves in helping to bring in criminals who are exploiting the chaos caused by the alien invasion, and escorting citizens to safer areas. Gangbusting Out All Over By John Mahoney Metropolis police are stump by the resurgence of a vigilante donning the Gangbuster identity. The original Gangbuster, Jose Delgado, has long since recovering from his near fatal battle with the Combattor and is cleared as a suspect by the police. Delgado himself is deeply concern of this new Gangbuster. Local citizens are appreciative of having the Gangbuster in their midst, as they felt safer having the vigilante patrolling their neighborhood. Even local civilian groups are setting up insurance funds for the "hero" in case anything like what happen to Delgado were to happen to the new Gangbuster. In another bizarre development, Gangbuster was recently spotted in operation outside of Metropolis, namely at the United Nations building in New York City. How such an alleged now-superpowered vigilante traveled at great distances between Metropolis and New York have only produced more unanswered questions. Though Gangbuster has yet to mortally wound his victims, he is still wanted for questioning in numerous cases of assault and battery, harassment, reckless endangerment, and carrying a weapon with the intent to inflict bodily harm. Invasion: The True Threat By Perry White Perry White writes that while the Alien Alliance is undoubtedly a serious threat, but the real threat is humanity itself. Specifically, humanity's real power to decide the outcome of the war. When the Alliance proposed their threat to Earth by giving the planet's superheroes to the invaders in exchange for leaving Earth alone, they are playing on humanity's fears and causing them to question their faith on Earth's strongest defenders. Even the Eagle, a usually responsible newspaper, raised the issue of whether internment camps for known extraterrestrials, be they super-villains or superheroes, might not be a viable option given the threat of the Alliance. White strongly dismisses the notion of turning down Earth's heroes, both terrestrial and extraterrestrial, and urging that the people of Earth must stand behind them to survive the invasion. Now it is the Planet's job to combat any sense of "anti-hero" sentiment bred from fear that would indirectly make superheroes powerless. Lexcorp Positioned For Profit By Paul Levitz Lex Luthor announced a major restructuring of his company Lexcorp that would enable it to support the war effort. In a prepared announcement, Luthor commented, "It is vital that Lexcorp's commanding lead in technology be placed at the side of the government in this moment of crisis." Lexcorp plans to make its high secret and advanced technology available for military use under a precedent-setting agreement with the U.S. government. All technology currently utilized by Lexcorp and protected as trade secrets, or in the early stages patent filing, will be granted immediate and extended patents. Unnamed spokespersons at the White House stated that the deal has been struck at the highest level with the consent of Congressional leaders, and "...sort of shoved down the throat of the Patent Office." This will be the first extended patent term legislation since World War II veterans were granted limited rights to extensions up until 1950. Analyst Tom Pattison, who follow the firm for the brokerage house of Pattison, Cowen, Clark and Grant, cited, "Luthor's canniness at striking a deal that is both patriotic and incredibly profitable. Lexcorp will gain access to prime government contracts in trade for making his technology available, but he will also get unprecedented patent protection." | Appearing1 = Featured Characters: * ** ** Supporting Characters: * * ** * * Javier Pérez de Cuéllar * Vernon Walters * * * General * * ** ** Antagonists: * ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** Other Characters: * * * * * * * * * * Locations: * * * Items: * Vehicles: * | Notes = | Trivia = * The Daily Planet's headline, "Earth to Invaders: DROP DEAD!", was a reference to the October 30, 1975 issue of the New York Daily News, whose headline reads, "FORD TO CITY: DROP DEAD". | Recommended = | Links = }}